A/N: Long time no see, everyone! I am here with another chapter since it has been a while. I haven't been able to produce much new material since, urgh, chronic migraine sucks as usual. My new medicine regime seems quite promising but I've been burned before, so I'm crossing my fingers on this one. Wish me lucks.

Anyway, that's enough about me. I know you're all here for Sasuke's and Naruto's awkward teenager flirting. So let's get to it!

Chapter 53: Young and Beautiful

The town became livelier as the sun began to set and the lanterns were lit. The shops on the main streets were now open, and the Obon night had begun.

It was hard to miss the buzz in the cool autumn air as Naruto stood by the gate waiting for the rest of the group. He could hear people talking excitedly outside, their wooden sandals clanking on the dirt road, children laughing, shouting, screaming. It was a night where the town seemed more alive than any other time of the year.

The blond couldn't say he was too thrill about the festival, though. His shinobi instinct just screamed danger at a large group of people irrespective of what he knew of the town. Grass Country, while housing a hidden village, didn't really have a strong shinobi presence, having been beaten so thoroughly barely two decades ago. Naruto knew he could go in town being himself without any problem, but still, after so many years of looking over his shoulder, it was hard to put the sense of unease away.

He was jolted out of his thoughts when a small mass ran into his legs. He looked down and was greeted by Akane's bright smile. She was in a tiny brightly-colored furisode kimono completed with a small pouch for her to carry her pocket money. On her tiny head was a flower headdress with flowing petals that were worn to the front to help mask her scar. Naruto smiled back gently.

"Now, now, a fine lady shouldn't be running like that, don't you think?" he said as he crouched down to adjust the flower. Akane giggled, and Naruto's cheeks hurt by the force of the muscles pulling his lips wider. His chest was warmed by how happy the little girl looked in her best dress.

"Akane, don't just run off like that," came the voice of a slightly annoyed Ran. Unlike Akane, she chose to just wear her normal clothes for the occasion with an addition of a haori to keep her warm in the cool weather. Akane pouted at her. The older girl sighed. "You can get lost on the streets like that."

"That's true, Akane," Naruto added. "It's better to stick with the group, okay?"

The younger girl pouted harder with both him and Ran bossing her, but the only thing Naruto could think of was how adorable she looked.

Kasumi walked out of the front door then. The mistress didn't miss the chance to dress up in her calming blue komon kimono, and it seems she didn't miss the chance of dressing Saya up in one either. One look on the kunoichi's face and Naruto was reminded of a cat tolerating a bath. It was funny how Kasumi could spring nearly anything on Saya, and she wouldn't be able to oppose her. Naruto wondered if the mistress would be willing to teach him the secret sometimes.

Karin, on the other hand, was loving her red furisode kimono very much. She and Akane basically squealed at each other over how bright colors were the best for festivities. The guys' clothes were tame in comparison. Suigetsu's was plain but meticulously assembled to look sharp. Juugo had a shirt and a haori especially made so he could be decent for the festival. Sensei, who needed to look respectable as one of the elders, chose white and gray kimono for the occasion. That coupled with white hair and pale, wrinkly skin made him look like one of the ghosts rather than one of the livings.

With all the hustling and bustling, it took awhile for Naruto to realize that they were missing Sasuke, but not before Kasumi noticed, too. "Shizuka-kun," she shouted into the house, "we're ready to go."

There was a voice from inside that the blond couldn't quite make out, and then Sasuke was there, walking out of the front door in a gray kimono and the dark purple obi sitting just above his hip. It was plain, but also entirely fetching on the raven's strong frame. Even Suigetsu thought so. He whistled loudly. "That is nice."

The raven glared at the swordsman then his eyes flicked to Naruto. He frowned, looking slightly mortified. "You're not in a kimono."

Naruto lifted his eyebrows in response. Was he supposed to? Nobody else seemed to have an issue with him being in a plain pants, a t-shirt, and a haori.

A stretch of silence passed. After a while of no one saying anything, the raven looked uncomfortable enough to leave. "This is ridiculous," he muttered, and with that he turned back and was about to walk inside, but not before Kasumi pulled him back out.

It was in that moment that Naruto felt an elbow jabbed hard into his back. He turned around to find Karin glaring at him. "Say something," she whispered harshly. He blinked. What was he supposed to say? And why was Kasumi staring expectantly at him, too?

Karin waited, sighed, pinched the blond hard and covered up his wincing with a loud, "You look great, Shizuka. Don't worry about it." And just for good measure, she walked up to him, looped her arms around his, and pulled him to the gate. "C'mon, it's getting late. I want some oden before it gets too crowded."

To Naruto's surprise, Sasuke went with her out the gate without a complaint. But maybe he shouldn't be surprised. He had never seen Sasuke as close to any girl as he was to Karin. Maybe his cousin's exuberant, forthright, and uncompromising personality was what the raven needed. Opposite attracted, they said.

There was another jab to his back, and he turned to find Kasumi looking disapprovingly at him. It was odd to see her so vexed. "Go talk to him," was all she said before she turned around and ushered the children out the gate as well. The blond followed her, not knowing what else he was supposed to do or why everyone seemed to be disappointed.

Even Juugo was looking at him funny as they walked side by side down the road, the light and sound of the festival in sight. "You really are exceptionally unperceptive about some things," said the giant before he suddenly pushed the blond forward, almost right into Sensei's back if the old man didn't step aside. And before he knew it, he nearly crashed into Sasuke, who looked just as surprised to see him.

"Umm, sorry," he said, trying to weasel his way back to the back of the group, but Suigetsu was blocking his path. So he ended up walking side by side with Sasuke onto the main street. Karin, on the other hand, was nowhere to be found. "Where's your date?"

The raven blinked at him. "My date?"

"Yeah, you and Karin...umm..." When it came to it, he still couldn't bring himself to ask.

Sasuke looked surprised by that. "She's not my date."

Now, it was Naruto's turn to be surprised. "But you two-"

"Karin just happens to be one of the few women I find tolerable," was the raven's reply. "We're not like that. And she knows it."

"Oh," was the only thing Naruto could say. He thought he should be disappointed on Karin's behalf, but, well, one couldn't force the matter of the heart, he supposed. "So there's nothing going on."

The Uchiha snorted. "No, dumbass. I don't even know where you get that idea from." Now, Naruto could list a few reasons why he thought Sasuke and Karin looked like they were going to be a thing, but suddenly the raven stopped. He frowned, looked around the street full of people, and turned to the blond. "Naru, where is everybody?"

/***/

The split wasn't her idea, like wearing a kimono wasn't her idea, although she couldn't say she was against it. After having to watch them not-quite-flirting with each other, she didn't need much coercion to join in with Karin and Kasumi to get the two together. Even Sensei, who typically didn't care enough to comment about this sort of thing, outright asked her if those two were seeing each other.

And therein lay the problem. Everyone else knew what was going on except the two people who were directly involved.

"You look worried," said Kasumi as she came back with a plate of dango soaked in sweet shoyu sauce. "They'll be fine."

Saya sighed. "I don't know," was she reply before she picked one of the stick and popped the first ball of rice dough into her mouth. She honestly hoped they would be fine. For their own sake, she hoped they could sort out their feelings before something truly terrible happened.

And Kasumi seemed to know this. She sighed and said, "Children don't always do what is best for them, but, trust me, they'll find their way there somehow. They always do." And Saya never wanted to believe anything more than that in that moment.

/***/

Naruto could not, for the life of him, figure out how they got split up in a festival that was essentially a street long. And yet they did. His first thought had been genjutsu, but a 'kai' and a few odd looks later proved him wrong. There was no genjutsu. They really just got split up.

"Ah, dammit," he scratched the back of his head. With the number of vendors and people around, it was a too crowded to just search the street.

"Where do you think they could be?" asked Sasuke.

Naruto let out a huff. "They're probably looking for food right now. Kasumi-san told me there's going to be plays in front of the shrine, so they might be there. And then the all-night dance started from ten until dawn in the town square."

The raven hummed. "How about we check the food stalls on the way to the shrine." Naruto thought it was a good idea, at least the best one they had considering the circumstance. With any luck, they'd find Juugo's head poking up from the crowd and locate the group that way.

But they didn't, the crowd being the biggest issue. Naruto honestly had no idea where these people come from with how small the town was. It was near claustrophobic with the whirlwind of human, moving however they pleased. He nearly lost Sasuke to a group of girls suddenly stopping the raven on his track. The blond had to break free from the torrent of people and find his way back to the raven, who by then looked like he was ready to strangle each and every one of the young, chatty women in his presence. Naruto finally got him out of there without an incidence, but the blond didn't want to risk it another time.

So, he reached out and grabbed Sasuke's hand.

He could feel the raven jumped at the touch, although he didn't pull away. "What are you doing?" Sasuke whispered.

"Just act normal and no one will notice," the blond whispered back. Sasuke looked like he wanted to argue, but after a moment he just huffed and adjusted his hand so their fingers laced together, an easier hold when they were walking shoulder to shoulder. Naruto thought he saw the raven's ears turning slightly red as his eyes looked anywhere else but where the blond was.

They made a few stops at the food stalls along the way to see if they could find anyone they knew, but there wasn't a soul in sight that Naruto could name. To make matter worse, all the sight, the smell, the sound, only made Naruto's mouth watered like mad. His attention increasingly turned to food as they walked past the takoyaki stand and then the grilled potatoes and then the taiyaki. He really wasn't going to find his friend with his stomach growling like a lion like this.

Sasuke snorted when Naruto's stomach made itself know loudly by the yakisoba stand. "Just buy a plate so we can move on." Naruto lifted an eyebrow, but he did as told. Sasuke waited patiently beside him as he paid for and received a small plate of fried noodles.

"Want some?" he asked after they started down the street once again, trying to keep close together.

The raven took a look at his plate and shook his head. "Not with that much carb."

"Hey, don't say it like you don't eat carb."

Sasuke didn't deny it, but then his eyes were already fixed something else. It was an okonomiyaki stand with a dazzling display of items, one of them being the plumb red fruits.

"Seriously?" Naruto turned to look at his friend with a grimace. "Who put tomatoes in okonomiyaki?"

"Apparently, not just me," said the raven as he waltzed over, pulling Naruto after him by the waist, to order one. The pancake wasn't very large, just enough to cover the hand-size paper plate, with a giant slice of tomato in the middle. The blond swore that there was light in his friend's eyes as he took one large bite into the side. Naruto wanted to gag.

"I don't think I'll ever understand you and tomatoes," the blond muttered as he went on to finish his noodle.

"Nor I you and ramen," was Sasuke's response.

"Hey, ramen is proper food," Naruto countered. "Tomato is a fruit."

"Tomatoes are more nutritious than ramen."

"Bullshit," Naruto said. As firm as his belief was that ramen was superior food, he couldn't help but smile when Sasuke started devouring his pancake with the same enthusiasm as a child going at his candy. Any reservation that was signature Uchiha Sasuke was pretty much gone, and his eyes lit up with joy when he bit down on the tomato. Naruto wasn't going to be surprised if it stuck in the raven's throat by how fast he was going. He didn't even notice a glob of thick sauce at the corner of his mouth.

Sasuke noticed the blond looking and scowled at him then. "What are you laughing at?"

Naruto couldn't stop smiling. "You got sauce on your face."

There was a second of Sasuke being bewildered and trying to figure out where the sauce was. The blond pulled out the napkin he got with the yakisoba and dabbed it onto the side of the raven's mouth. "There. It's gone."

Honestly, Naruto was prepared for a scowl, a shout, a fight. He wasn't prepared for Sasuke to be absolutely frozen staring at him like he had suddenly grown a head. Naruto lifted an eyebrow, which seemed to jolt the raven out of his stupor and prompted him to turn away, ears as red as the tomato he just ate.

Then suddenly, Sasuke turned back, grabbed his hand, and dragged him across the sea of people to the other side of the road. "Oden," was the only thing he said. That was when Naruto saw the word Oden tall and high on one of the stands, rising above the cloud of warm steam from the pots below. He remembered then that Karin mentioned something about oden when they left.

Except, there wasn't a sign of the redhead anywhere. They looked at the table there but there was no one they knew. Sasuke even decided to ask the owner if he had seen a redhead in a bright red kimono, but he said no and handed them the two bowls they ordered. Naruto guessed he should be agitated by now, but the warm steam and the humid air around them made it hard to feel anything but content. It reminded him of a ramen stand after a heavy rain, a small sanctuary of warmth amidst the cold.

They went to the table to finish their food, packing in with other festival-goers who stopped by for some warm soup. Naruto didn't mind, though. A bowl of warm oden was all he needed to feel at peace.

"You really like it, huh?" Sasuke said after watching him for a while, not that Naruto minded.

"It's warm," he said. "I like warm things." It was probably the closest thing to the feeling of home he knew. It reminded him of Ichiraku and old man Teuchi who welcomed him into the shop when no one else would. It reminded him of Iruka-sensei and their dinners together in a cool autumn night at the start of the school year.

"Naru?"

He looked up, only realizing then that he had spaced out. Sasuke was looking back with a frown of concern on his face. The blond smiled and shook his head. "It's nothing. Let's finish this and go to the shrine, shall we?"

/***/

When they started down the street again, it was Sasuke who reached out for Naruto's hand.

The blond lifted an eyebrow at him, but otherwise didn't comment on the raven's sudden need for a physical contact. A part of Sasuke wished Naruto had asked because Uchiha Sasuke was too much of a coward to tell him how he dislike being left behind, how he wanted to know what was going on in the blond's mind. Maybe then he could tell Naruto how he wanted to share those thoughts, to feel close to the jinchuuriki in a way that mattered. Maybe he could tell Naruto how weak he had felt all these years, wanting to believe he could make things better but knowing he had no clue how.

But Naruto didn't ask, and so Sasuke didn't talk. Instead, they walked towards the entrance of the shrine. The play had already begun when they arrived, but the people were still searching for available seats on the rows of benches set out in front of the stage. Music was blaring out of the speakers along with a voice reading out a poetry as an actress in a colorful kimono danced among fake trees and animals. Sasuke couldn't really tell what the story was, not that he knew many, but he wasn't here for the play anyhow. They walked in searching for a familiar back but again found none.

Behind them were still people walking in, so the blond pulled Sasuke into a row and sat them on the two available seats. A man in a black yokai mask and cloak entered the stage then and began to stalk the woman. That plot the raven could understand until the moment the woman noticed she was being watched and tried to seek him out. The yokai basically ran from her then, and Sasuke was pretty much lost.

Naruto must have seen his confusion then because he said, "It's the story of the Gods of Seasons. Have you heard of that?"

The raven frowned.

"Mother Life and Father Death?"

The raven scowled harder. Did those words suppose to mean something to him?

He could see that Naruto was at the end of his rope. "The Mother Goddess?"

"I think we have pretty much established that I know next to nothing about gods," said Sasuke. Apparently, he was too loud even for the audience of near unintelligible audio that one of them turned around and shushed them. Naruto inclined his head apologetically with a sheepish grin that placated the man enough for him to turn back to the play. The raven wondered if he was just pretending or if he really understood it.

On second thought, maybe he did understand it. Sasuke only noticed then that the people around him didn't seemed to have any problem following the story, including Naruto who wasn't a student of the books by any mean. So this had to be a common folklore somehow. Unfortunately, his family wasn't keen on fanciful stories that the raven had no hope of even knowing something similar.

Just as Sasuke gave into the fate of the confused foreigner, Naruto leaned in. His arm slid across Sasuke's back to the bench to steady himself as his breaths grazed the raven's ear. And the Uchiha felt his entire body heating up. "The woman there is Mother Life. She's the source of all lives," Naruto whispered. "That's why she's also known as the Mother Goddess. And that guy in black is Father Death."

With each word, the warm puff of air grazed gently against the shell of Sasuke's ear and goose bumps bloomed across his skin. Naruto was too close, too warm, and too inviting Sasuke could barely concentrate on the play at all.

"Life first awoke on the Land, and Death underneath it," the blond continued, oblivious to the predicament the raven was in. "Soon Death came up to the Land, and he found the living things Life had created. He fell in love with her. But whenever he touched her creation, he killed it, and he felt ashamed. He thought of loving her from afar and never letting her know, thinking he wasn't worthy."

The quiet rasp in Naruto's voice made the raven's heart fluttered wildly like a leaf in the wind. The woman on the stage seemed to dance with it.

"Death couldn't really hide from her because he left his traces everywhere he went. At first, Life was dismay that her creations should die. But then, she found a dead rabbit one day. And from the carcass were the most beautiful flowers she had ever seen. So she became intrigue and sought him out."

On the stage was a frantic chase as Death escaped and Life followed, but Death was doomed because he could not stay away. His love brought him back to her despite his fear of being discovered, of being hated, of being rejected. He brought himself to his own condemnation over and over because love was insanity and even the gods could not escape it.

And sure enough, she found him.

There was a pause that nearly made the raven's heart stop as Death on stage stood up, turning slowly in agonizing movements of limbs to the woman who stood tall next to him. Even with the mask, the raven could tell that he was afraid. He feared her judgement, her rage. But she smiled and offered him her hand.

"And Life fell in love, too."

The raven let out a breath he didn't know he was holding as Death shakily reached out to her, doubt and fear clear in his movements. But Life grasped his hand, and there was no more uncertainty. His love was returned, and Death's posture changed. He was confident now - full of grace, full of love.

"So Life and Death wedded. And Death took her back to the underworld to consummate their marriage. They said Life and Death were so in love that they forgot time, and the Earth withered in her absence. When they finally turned their attention back to the Land, they found it barren, and they were ashamed."

There on the stage stood two figures stalk still staring at their feet with their hands linked. The stage was empty now. No fake trees or bushes. No fake birds and rabbits. Then they turned slowly to each other before Death let go of Life's hand. Sasuke's stomach dropped as he watched Death retreated into the shadow, while his wife began, once again, to dance.

"So they came up with a plan. For half of the year, Life will live on the Land and create. She brings spring and summer." At that, the trees and bushes were once again put on the stage. The world came back to life. "Then another half she will go back to be with her husband in the underworld. Her creation will wither, but it wouldn't be long enough for all the living things to die out before she comes back. And that is how the seasons become the seasons."

Sasuke blinked. He couldn't quite comprehend what just happened on stage. He fully expected the story to end in tragedy, for the lovers to be torn apart by duty. It didn't occur to him that there could be a compromise, an imperfect solution that worked nonetheless.

He barely heard the claps erupted around them as Naruto pulled back. The loss of warmth was too palpable for him to care about the actor and actress bowing on the stage. He turned to the blond and found him looking back still. Naruto was close enough that the raven could see the thin ring of blue in his eyes, watching him curiously.

"What are you thinking really hard about?" the blond asked.

Sasuke really didn't know what to say. There were so many things going on in his mind, so he said the one that had been nagging him from the beginning. "I was thinking how Death is a wimp."

The hustles and bustles of people leaving was loud, but Sasuke could still hear the blond chuckling. "You're not wrong there, but it's only true for the version of the story told around here. There's actually another version where Death kidnaps and rapes Life and she escapes from him." Then he scratched the back of his head. "There's even Death as a princely figure in completely different story. It's really weird how people see death as."

"What about you?"

It was a spur of the moment that the raven couldn't quite explain. Death was not something he had ever wanted to talk about. It was too personal and too painful to be adequately described in words. He was certain that was the case for Naruto, too, but something about personifying death made it easier to talk about.

Naruto let out a dry laugh before he said, "A thief." And that was it. There was really no elaboration, no further clarification, but to Sasuke that might have been the most apt description. Both of them were robbed so much by death - their families, their childhood, and also in some ways their future.

"To me, death looks like Itachi."

Naruto's eyes focused sharply on him then, and Sasuke's throat dried. He didn't even know if he wanted to talk about this. He had never talked to anyone about the nightmares he had after his parents died. Or how Itachi had morphed in his mind from a person, a brother, to something so other that he haunted Sasuke's waking moments. Or the fact that Itachi in his mind was still changing even now. After that brief encounter with his brother, the frightful face of death had become something more human. He still invoked anxiety in Sasuke, but now he was becoming smaller, becoming manageable, becoming killable.

"It's his face when I found him standing over our parents' bodies," the raven continued. "I wouldn't say he looked insane, but there was something wrong about his expression." He swallowed. "That was death to me, the merciless killing machine that needs to be stopped."

People walked past them on their way out. None stopped to listen. None took an interest. People were too preoccupied with their own problems, with their own lives, to look at a child who had lost everything. Only Naruto looked at him. His eyes bore into Sasuke's, and the raven had never seen them burned as darkly as they did then. Naruto looked at him a lot in the past, he realized. He had been the one who always shied away from his gaze, the one who had acted like he didn't care. But he knew now that he wanted this gaze in his life. He wanted Naruto to always look his way.

"We'll get him," the blond said, quiet but heavy with promise. "We'll make him answer for what he'd done."

And Sasuke believed him.

/***/

The walk out of the theater was silent. Sasuke had never felt as raw as he was right then, a state of mind he didn't quite understand. Anchoring him was Naruto's hand - warm, large, and heavy. It didn't matter that the raven's hand was just as large and as strong. The way Naruto held his was firm and steady, making him felt protected and important. And he hadn't felt both in a long time. Somehow, it filled him with deep contentment.

And Naruto noticed it, too. As they were approaching the town square, Naruto spoke, "For some reason, I have a feeling that you're mulling on something really hard and being happy at the same time."

Sasuke turned and the blond's eyes were on him. His heart did a little jump. "You mean I can't mull on a happy thought? Who says seriousness is reserved only for doom and gloom."

He saw the corner of Naruto's mouth lifted up into something that looked almost mischievous. "Does this thought involve somebody else's doom and gloom by any chance?"

"Does world domination qualify as somebody else's doom and gloom?" because that was something Sasuke felt like he was able to do right then with Naruto by his side.

The blond feinted despair. "Dear me! Lord Shizuka is taking over the world and all the women in it."

Sasuke chuckled. "Like I even care about women, idiot."

He only realized what he just said once the words slipped out of his mouth, and his stomach dropped to the ground. They had never talked about this. The topic had been irrelevant to their friendship, to their goals, to their bond, so Sasuke had never given it a thought. Only now did he remembered what Karin had practically said to his face. Naruto liked women. And Sasuke wasn't a woman.

He could see Naruto's mouth moving, his face animated as he dramatized the conversation, but the raven couldn't hear a word from the ringing in his ears. Suddenly, Naruto's hand felt too hot to touch and Sasuke's body too cold. Why didn't he even think of this before it got out of hand? How stupid could he be?

And the blond was frowning now. The raven knew Naruto had caught on that something was wrong. Sasuke wanted to run, but the jinchuuriki's hand felt too powerful to fight. So he stood there frozen as the blond stepped closer, asking something the raven couldn't understand.

Then suddenly somebody grabbed Naruto from behind. For a split second he thought they were attacked, but then a girl's voice said, "Welcome to Obon, Naru-chan!"

The blond turned back with a wide grin on this face. "Satsuki-chan, Minae-chan! What brought you here?"

Satsuki stepped back then, placing her hands on her hip. She wore a brightly colored kimono and her curly hair in a side ponytail with flowers around the tie. Beside her was another girl about the same age and a little chubbier but with the same confidence as her friend. They were probably around sixteen or seventeen, but it was hard to tell with girls. "It's Obon. Of course, I'm back. I might be living in Fire now, but I can still find time to visit, you know." Satsuki waggled her brows.

Naruto blinked. "So, your adoptive parents come, too?"

"Nah, too busy. I mean, they don't know anyone here anyway. So I come with Minae." At that, she gave the chubby girl beside her a big hug. "We're staying at Umeko's place."

It was only then that Sasuke noticed another girl standing back from the group. She dressed much plainer than either of her friends. And her hands seemed to be fidgeting all the time. The dark eyes instantly lit up when Naruto's gaze turned to her. "Hi, Umeko." He smiled. Her face turned into a deep shade of pink as she said a quiet hi back.

"You're a meanie, you know," Satsuki continued. "I've heard from Densuke-san that you've been here for a week, and you didn't even visit Ume at all." Then suddenly, she grabbed his arm and smiled. "So you're going to make up to Ume and dance with her tonight, right?"

The raven turned to watch Naruto, and his heart sank as the blond laughed awkwardly. He didn't say no, and why would he? Umeko might be plain, but she wasn't ugly. And she was clearly interested, not that Naruto couldn't get girls to be interested in him. And suddenly Sasuke felt like he needed to sit down. "I'm going to get something to drink," the raven said, completely ignoring the conversation and trying to not think of the direction this was going. Naruto turned sharply to him and opened his mouth, but Sasuke really couldn't listen to him right now. "Just go have fun."

Satsuki might be saying something along the line of "how rude" but the raven couldn't really tell as the sounds around him seemed to get louder and louder. He strode off to the nearest drink stand by the entrance of the square and ordered two bottles of sake right off the bat.

"You might want to be careful with that," said the owner as he handed him two porcelain bottles with concern in his eyes. He probably saw thunder on Sasuke's face, but at that point, the raven no longer cared. He just needed the drink and a lot of it.

The music began as he finally found a table to sit. People were lining up around the center stage where the drummers were. Sasuke could see a head of blond popping up from the crowd as he straightened up. He was looking at the girl in the line in front of him. The raven could only surmise that they were talking and, by the look on her face, having a good time.

Sasuke looked down at the small cup in his hand and placed it upside down on the table. He then took the bottle and chucked the content straight down.

/***/

End of Chapter 53

A/N:

fartingunicorns Thank you so much for reading this far! Here's an update. :)

arsenicminds That is the goal, my friend. Glad that you can join us!

Guest I think you're being sarcastic, but I could not figure out why considering that Kakashi's grasp on psychology is canonically terrible.

Fiery Shorti Thanks! Trust me. There's a good reason to write a modern time AU about these two idiots - so that they are less of an idiot. And thanks for reading!

43cc2 This is probably the third time someone mentions this, but I'm too lazy to find my old answer for you. Essentially, if you look in the canon Naruto doesn't seem to heal that fast in the beginning when he has yet to access Kurama's chakra fully. He does heal faster than most, but an injury to the joint, even a minor one, take months if not years to heal. My knee took over a year before I can sit in a car without being in pain, and I just injured the tendons, not broken the joint entirely. So, say, a month to get to 100% recovery from a broken wrist without drastic chakra intervention? That's called a miracle, my friend.

This makes me wonder, though, do young people these days get injuries from messing about or you just don't do that anymore? Is that why some of you seems to have no idea how the body works after an injury?

Guest Oh, thank you. I'm really glad you like the OC's. I do try my best to write the characters, OC or otherwise, as people. Your feedback really let me know that I'm at least doing something right, which is always great to know because it's usually harder to figure out the right thing than the wrong thing.

Naruto really needs a wake-up call, doesn't he? And, yes, Sensei was totally in on this entire scheme. There's no way he's not going to chip in after that dinner. :P

Jaa Oh, thank you! That's so kind of you. It'll do my best to keep up the quality (and the update), so please come around again!

Brenda Joyeux I know, it's a tough call, isn't it? Not to mention Sensei is probably the person who sympathizes with Naruto leaving Konoha (and in some way the shinobi system) the most. I don't think Naruto is even ready to think about it right now, though. And thanks for letting me know. :)

Guest Aaaand the awkward teenage flirting has turned into an awkward teenage first date. XD Everyone around them just couldn't stand them checking each other out anymore. And, yes, feelings are going to complicate things when Itachi walks into the picture, and Naruto's hero complex might really be his own undoing this time. *sigh* Why are they so complicated.